Pope Benedict will be missed. But, contrary to prophecies of doom, the Catholic Church will endure

Are we headed towards an apocalypse? First an asteroid comes close to the Earth, then the British start eating horse and now … the Pope resigns. Resigning is something that Popes very rarely do. That last time it was done voluntarily was by Celestine V in 1294; Gregory XII stepped down under political pressure in 1415. By contrast, John Paul II remained in his position regardless of his declining health – a testament to the man’s extraordinary will power.

How wonderful it is to be part of a church that has a memory stretching back centuries. Alas, its prophesies don’t reach much further in to the future. According to Saint Malachy’s Prophecy of the Popes (published in 1595), Benedict is the penultimate Pope before the End of Times begin. The Prophecy has actually been eerily accurate in predicting the identity of each Pope in turn, which is why it makes for such troubling reading today. After Benedict will come Peter of Rome, under whose watch “the city of seven hills will be destroyed, and the terrible judge will judge his people.” Given the terms of current EU equality law, the Prophecy might well be undone by the forced election of Cherie Blair. But if it does come true, if Peter is elected and Armageddon is upon us, I’m really going to have to get my house in order before the judgement begins. I’m clearing my internet history as I type…

I converted to Catholicism not long after Benedict took over, so he’s always been “my” Pope. And I’ve been lucky. He’s an uncommonly intelligent man who has embodied what’s best about post-Vatican II Catholicism. Contrary to his divisive image encouraged by some in the media (who understand Catholicism as well as they do Aramaic) he put reunifying the Church at the heart of his pontificate. That meant reaching out to the Eastern Orthodox and permitting a revival of traditional liturgy for homegrown conservatives. The latter has led to a revolution in the English Church. Back in 2005, to request a traditional Mass (Latin, pre-60s liturgy and absolutely no tambourines) was akin to requesting a sausage sandwich at a Green Party Vegan fundraiser. Traditionalists were treated like embarrassing relics and it’s not an exaggeration to write that some were persecuted for their beliefs. But Benedict brought a new reading of Vatican II that stressed living tradition and encouraging greater reverence and beauty in the Mass. That might mean more people receiving communion on the tongue or a more semantically precise liturgy, but the greatest innovation was to free traditionalists to explore the Old Rite. He was our Gorbachev.

And so I had the extraordinary honour of discovering Catholicism at a time of enthusiasm and revival. Some of my happiest memories have been in helping my local priest to celebrate the Mass as it was done for centuries – in prayerful silence accompanied only the soft click of rosary beads, or transformed by the unearthly beauty of a choir in full Gloria. For instruction, there was Benedict’s masterful biography of Jesus and for leadership there were his pronouncements on social justice or the importance of life. I appreciate that for the generation before, John Paul embodied the sinewy, charismatic faith of the Cold War struggle. But for me it’s been a unique joy to pray alongside a monkish Pope who is as graceful as he is intelligent. His quiet retirement is entirely becoming.

Benedict XVI has his critics and there may even be some who will take joy in his resignation. But they miss something important about the Catholic Church. We are bigger, older and capable of more than one man. We stretch back centuries and, hoping that Saint Malachy is wrong, will continue for many more. The Pope is only infallible only so long as he articulates doctrine, and his role is only to be the guardian of the Truth and never to rewrite it. Benedict’s retirement will probably generate endless copy about a Church in crisis or the need for change. But “crisis” is a matter of subjective interpretation and Catholics don’t do change. Benedict has done his job well by leaving the Church as he found it. After that, we shall endure so long as our faith is strong enough.